Lion Brand Notebook
News, Ideas and Information for Crafting with Yarn
Lion Brand Notebook
News, Ideas and Information for Crafting with Yarn
World Wide Knit in Public Day is nearly upon us!
World Wide Knit in Public Day (June 11th, with celebrations all week long) is a holiday when knitters, crocheters, and all lovers of yarn are encouraged to take their crafting with them out into public. Here are 3 great ways to celebrate this yarncraft holiday:
1) Wear something to show your crafter pride! There’s still time to make a small accessory or two before the big day. The Crochet Bracelet and the Knit Bracelet (pictured above) both sparkle in Vanna’s Glamour and work up in no time. Plus, you can wear them no matter how warm or cold it is!
2) Make something special in public! Why not try out a new pattern or yarn for the occasion? Treat yourself to some special crafting time in a public place and enjoy showing others your skills! Our Pattern Finder is a great place to start looking for new and interesting projects. Check out our previous post about how to use this feature of our site.
3) Find a group to celebrate with! Groups are forming and events are being planned all over the world. The World Wide Knit in Public Day website has a database of KIP (Knitting In Public) events online at www.wwkipday.com. You can check out local events near you, or plan your own!
How are you celebrating the big day? Leave a comment to tell us what you’re up to, and what makes World Wide Knit in Public Day special to you!
Posted in Community, Crafting, Crocheting, Events, Knitting | 19 Comments » Comments
Earlier this year, we featured a photo of our Amazing man, a sculpture made with various colors of our Amazing yarn that was featured at the CHA trade show. If you want to see him in person, you can visit the San Jose Museum of Quilts & Textiles in San Jose, CA starting this week. Both he and his couch will be part of the exhibit, Primary Structures from May 17 to August 7.
Related links:
Posted in Events, Fiber Arts/Artists, On The Road, Yarniverse | 1 Comment » Comments
If you’re going to be in Berlin from April 6 to 10, stop by the Pictoplasma Festival–an annual celebration contemporary character culture–to see a whole solar system made in yarn!
Our friend Anna Hrachovec, the amazing knitter behind the popular blog Mochimochi Land and the book Knitting Mochimochi, will have a new installation called “Mochimochi Worlds” held at the Smallspace gallery. Learn more about the project on her blog.
The adorable planet bodies include a snowman and a big yarn-ball sun, in addition to the bear planet above, and are all made with Hometown USA and Wool-Ease Thick & Quick.
We wish Anna a great show, and we hope that if you’re in the Berlin area, you’ll check it out!
Posted in Events, Fiber Arts/Artists, Knitting, Yarniverse | 3 Comments » Comments
A few weeks ago, Lindsey, Kendra, and I attended Stitches West, one of the four fantastic Stitches yarn conventions that happen around the country*. It was my second time at the Santa Clara, CA show, and we had a blast!
Of course the great gang from XRX/Knitter’s Magazine was there, as well as the awesome crew from Ravelry, along with many of our great designer friends. Over at the booth, I interviewed designers Lily Chin, Edie Eckman, and Candice Eisner Strick–a sort of “live and in person” version of what I do twice a month on our podcast, YarnCraft–in addition to meeting hundreds of Lion Brand fans who came to check out the latest in yarns and designs. A couple of Lion Brand even lovers brought their projects to show off! Here are photos of one woman’s cowl made in Amazing:
For a similar cowl pattern on LionBrand.com, click here.
In the big fashion show, we had several garments made in our LB Collection yarns–these are luxe yarns available only on LionBrand.com, through our catalog, and in our NYC store–including the Sunset Raglan Tee, Lace Crochet Bolero, and the Chevron Tank Tunic. You can see photos of the bolero in the show from XRX/Knitter’s Magazine here and here.
Another highlight of the show was hanging out with Heatherly (that’s designer YarnYenta, for you sock lovers)and her daughters. (Often, in the yarn community, you only run into your yarn-crafting friends a few times a year at these sorts of shows!). Here is teenage Tirzah in the cropped cardigan she knit in Vanna’s Choice!
As always, we love seeing you live and in person, and of course, we love seeing your projects! Keep an eye on the blog for announcements of other shows we’re going to be attending this year!
*If someone asks you what a yarn convention is like, just tell them it’s like “Comic Con” (the hugely popular comic/gaming/sci-fi convention) but for people who love yarn. Both have a lot of people who dress up specially for the occasion, geek out on “celebrities” that are only really famous in that circle, and tons of cool booths to check out. I find this explanation works particularly well on guys.
Related links:
Posted in Community, Events, On The Road | 6 Comments » Comments
Here on the East Coast, it’s been quite wintry and blustery, but luckily for Lion Brand staffers, we’ve had some reasons to go out to sunny California for yarn and crafting events.
Last month, I was out in Long Beach for the TNNA Trade Show (that’s the National Needle Arts Association), where I met many industry insiders and interviewed them on what’s upcoming for 2011 in the world of yarn. You can listen to these interviews on YarnCraft, our podcast about all things knitting, crochet, and crafting with yarn (I like to call it “Car Talk” but for knitters & crocheters). Click the following to check out the episodes that include part 1 and part 2 of this mini-series of interviews; part 3 will come out tomorrow on 2/15.
Later in January, some of the Lion Brand team went out to Anaheim for the Craft & Hobby Association’s Winter Trade Show. Open to industry insiders, it’s a show where we–and many other companies–highlight new products and ideas for the upcoming year. We always host a big fashion show, emceed by Vanna White herself, featuring inspirational projects made with yarn. Our booth also features unique and unexpected ideas about creating with yarn. Check out our yarn man, sitting on a patchwork yarn sampler ottoman (with more yarn creations in the background):
And this weekend, we’ll be at Stitches West, a knit & crochet consumer show that’s open to the public, so be sure to stop by February 18 to 20. It’ll be at the Santa Clara Convention Center, in Santa Clara, CA. We’ll have a booth with samples of new yarns for you to touch and feel, raffles throughout the day, and discounts on orders placed at the booth. Come join us for this fun-filled weekend! Learn more by clicking here.
Related links:
Posted in Events, Lion Staff, On The Road, Yarniverse | 4 Comments » Comments
This month, we’re highlighting various fiber works and projects taking place currently around the country and the world. If you’d like to suggest an artist, exhibit, or event, please feel free to leave a comment and let us know!
From the summer of 2009 to the summer of 2010, the Philadelphia Mural Arts Program worked on the “Finding Home” project, a textile mural designed by Josh Saranatitis and Kathryn Pannepacker, assisted by Shelby Donnelly, aimed at raising awareness about homelessness. During that time artists and volunteers working in homeless shelters and cafes throughout Philadelphia worked together to weave the pieces of this mural. After this project, the studio re-invented itself into the Arts Street Textile Studio: handmade with the homeless. Staffed by fiber artists Kathryn Pannepacker and Leslie Sudock, recreation specialist Rachel Gucwa and muralist Mary Newsom, it’s a space that offers lessons in weaving, knitting, crochet, quilting, embroidery in an open studio space for a nominal contribution. The studio will also serve as a gallery featuring the works “of individuals who, though stigmatized as homeless or life-challenged, nonetheless identify as artists and want to work productively as artisans.” In addition, the organization–which is currently working to obtain non-profit status–has also initiated an outreach program to invite homeless women and children to participate in knitting, crochet, and quilting circles.
Stating that “art is a social service,” they are encouraging members of their community to come learn new skills and support this effort. Donations and contributions of materials, tools, and equipment are always welcome. Learn more by contacting Kathryn Pannepacker (kpannepacker@gmail.com) or Leslie Sudock (lsudock@gmail.com).
Arts Street Textile Studio
626 South Street, Philadelphia, PA
Wednesday – Sunday, 3 – 8pm
For more organizations doing good in the world through yarncrafting, click here for our Charity Connection.
Posted in Community, Events, Fiber Arts/Artists, Yarniverse | 2 Comments » Comments
This month, we’re highlighting the works of various fiber artists currently showing around the country and the world. If you’d like to suggest an artist or an exhibit, please feel free to leave a comment and let us know!
Ruth Marshall, a fiber artist based in New York City, is looking for volunteer knitters to help her create knitted tiger pelts, her latest fine art textile project, sponsored in part by Lion Brand. Ruth has been studying archived tiger pelts at the American Museum of Natural History, and she currently participating in the Open Studio Program at the Museum of Art & Design located at Columbus Circle, in Manhattan, every Friday until December 3rd, 2010.
On YarnCraft, our radio-style podcast, my co-host Liz and I also had the pleasure of talking to Ruth about her fascinating work, which draws attention to various endangered big cat species. (Click here to listen to that episode [MP3]; the interview with Ruth starts at about 11:14.)
If you are an experienced knitter in the NYC-area, particularly with experience in intarsia and multi-colored yarns and would like to hang out and knit at the Museum of Art & Design, please contact Ruth by visiting her website, RuthMarshall.com, and clicking on the “contact” button which will open up an email window.
Ruth’s previous work has been exhibited across North America at such institutions as the Hunterdon Museum, San Jose Museum, Indiana State Museum, Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art, MassArt, Museum of Art & Design, Dam, Stuhltrager Gallery – Brooklyn & Berlin, as well as various art fairs in Miami, FL; Chicago, IL; Paris, France; and Istanbul, Turkey. Awards include the BRIO-Bronx Council of the Arts. Ruth will be featured in two books coming out next spring, and will participate in “Green: A Color and a Cause”, at the Textile Museum, Washington D.C. in 2011.
Related links:
Posted in Community, Events, Fiber Arts/Artists, Knitting, YarnCraft Podcast, Yarniverse | Leave a comment » Comments
This month, we’re highlighting the works of various fiber artists currently showing around the country and the world. If you’d like to suggest an artist or an exhibit, please feel free to leave a comment and let us know!
This past week two fun art exhibits in New York City opened featuring some of our favorite fiber artists: Anna Hrachovec and Nathan Vincent.
Anna Hrachovec is best known for her blog Mochimochi Land and Knitting Mochimochi, her book of adorable knit toys. Her new exhibit at Gallery Hanahou displays an entirely hand-knit world, including skyscrapers and a quirky landscape with a model train running through it. The exhibit will last through October 29.
Nathan Vincent is a fiber artist who creates typically masculine objects in knit and crochet. He is one of many artists being featured in the inaugural group exhibit at Klause Gallery through October 31. You may remember him from the crochet taxidermy at the Lion Brand Yarn Studio or from the Yarn Show on Martha Stewart.
Workshops for a November exhibition at the Textile Arts Center are already underway. Artist Kim Hall, who believes that every knitter’s first scarf is lucky, is teaching knitting and collecting the resulting scarves for her project, “Virgin Knitters“. Check out the calendar for more information.
Are there any fiber related events near you? Let us know in the comments.
Related links:
Posted in Crocheting, Events, Fiber Arts/Artists, Knitting, Yarniverse | Leave a comment » Comments
At the World Maker Faire in New York City last week, fiber artist, Robyn Love, created a piece of installation art that was made of hundreds of hand knit and crochet squares of Hometown USA yarn. The squares were sewn together to create flame-like extensions for the rocket ship (still standing from the 1964 World’s Fair) that is located on the grounds of the New York Hall of Science. Robyn invited visitors to pin a note to the yarn squares with their message to the universe to symbolically send their wishes into space. Thousands of people at Maker Faire saw the work and hundreds participated by sending a message. The hand crafted “yarn flames” were removed from the rocket ship and will be resewn into afghans to donate to Warm Up America.
If you could send a message to the universe in just a few words, what would it be?
Related articles:
Posted in Community, Crafting, Crocheting, Events, Fiber Arts/Artists, Knitting, Yarniverse | 25 Comments » Comments
If you didn’t have an opportunity to see crochet artist Nathan Vincent’s fascinating yarn taxidermy when it was at the Lion Brand Yarn Studio back in late 2009 (as seen above), and you’re in the New York City area, you now have a second chance to see them! Nathan’s pieces will be on display from now through September 30 at Volume Black, a gallery in downtown Manhattan, located at 89 Washington Street.
From the artist’s website:
My work explores gender permissions and the challenges that arise from straying from the prescribed norms. It questions the qualities of gender by considering what constitutes masculine and feminine. It critiques stereotypical gender mediums by creating “masculine objects” using “feminine processes” such as crochet, sewing, and applique.
Want to learn more about Nathan’s work? Listen to our radio-style podcast YarnCraft’s episode 60 :: A Behind-the-Scenes Look at Fiber Artists Ruth Marshall & Nathan Vincent to hear more about his fascinating pieces in his own words.
Related links:
Posted in Crocheting, Events, Fiber Arts/Artists, Lion Brand Yarn Studio, Yarniverse | 6 Comments » Comments
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